Tribune News Network
Doha
Minister of State for Energy Affairs and President and CEO of Qatar Energy HE Eng. Saad bin Sherida Al Kaabi has said Qatar will stop shipping gas to the European Union (EU) if member states strictly enforce a new law regarding imposing fines on international companies.
The Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive, approved this year, requires larger companies operating in the European Union to check whether their supply chains use forced labour or cause environmental damage and to take action if they do. Penalties include fines of up to 5 percent of global turnover.
“If the case is that I lose 5 percent of my generated revenue by going to Europe, I will not go to Europe. I’m not bluffing,” Kaabi told Financial Times.
He added, “Five percent of generated revenue of QatarEnergy means 5 percent of generated revenue of the Qatar State. This is the people’s money, so I cannot lose that kind of money - and nobody would accept losing that kind of money.”
The EU adopted the corporate due diligence rules in May this year.
They are part of a broader set of reporting requirements aimed at aligning companies with the EU’s ambitious goal of reaching net zero emissions by 2050.
But the directive has prompted a widespread backlash from companies, both within and outside the EU, who have complained that the rules are too onerous and put them at a competitive disadvantage.
